Following weeks of protest to “defund the police,” Democratic socialist Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez lamented that a massive $1 billion budget cut to the New York Police Department (NYPD) is still not enough.

On Tuesday, AOC said in a statement that “Defunding police means defunding police. It does not mean budget tricks or funny math.” Seemingly oblivious to the surge in violence in New York City, AOC continued, “It does not mean moving school police officers from the NYPD budget to the Department of Education’s budget, so the exact same police remain in schools.” She also went on to claim that they do not want police officers to have overtime cuts. Instead, she believed that such “cuts” are simply a “disingenuous illusion,” and should not be considered as a “victory.” She warned, “The fight to defund policing continues.”

AOC’s statement came as a response to NYC’s vote to move a whopping $1 billion from NYPD to other community programs that are aimed at assisting the youth. Initially, the City Council agreed to take $837 million in a budget cut plus its associated costs. However, despite the drastic measures, AOC and the rest of her far-left supporters were having none of it. She even likened it to handing the money to “Groucho Marx” and “calling it a day.”

Other city council members echoed AOC’s sentiments. Corey Johnson, a council speaker, said that they had fought hard to attain the budget cut, but recognizes that it is just the start. “We need to go farther,” he urged. Activist Jawanza James Williams also agreed, saying that they were “gaslit” because the movement demanded “much more” than the $1 billion budget cut.

Other city council members expressed their reservations. Minority Whip Joseph Borelli stood firm against the cut, believing that it will only lead to “more violence in the city.” He claimed that within weeks of fatal shootings, “not one-shot by [a] NYPD officer.” Indeed, Borelli claimed that the move would only be counterproductive, as it would put public safety at risk.

NYC Mayor Bill De Blasio stated that while he understands the people’s frustration, they cannot risk safety among its residents. The move had become quite concerning, given the fact that New York ranks first among the top 10 cities with the most violent crimes per capita.

According to the New York Times, the budget cut would block NYPD from hiring 1,160 police officers. Given the surge in crime rates, things are not looking up. For example, in the first three weeks of the month, authorities had already listed 125 shooting incidents. The crime rate shot up that in one weekend alone, 28 shooting incidents took place, with 38 victims within 72 hours.

In a report from The Patriot Hill, among those that were killed is an innocent 17-year-old Bronx basketball star player who died while being at a house party on Sunday night.